Ignore ASUU’s demands, NASU, NAAT, SSANU tell FG

Ignore ASUU’s demands, NASU, NAAT,
SSANU tell FG
on november 01, 2013 at 8:57 pm in news
By JOHNBOSCO AGBAKWURU Abuja
NON Teaching staff in tertiary institutions in
Nigeria, have advised the Federal Government to
ignore the Memorandum of Understanding it entered
into with the striking lecturers on the aegis of
Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, saying
its implementation would lead to another round of
crisis.
The Non Teaching Staff comprising Non-Academic
Staff Union of Education and Associated Institutions,
NASU, National Association of Academic
Technologists, NAAT, and Senior Staff Association
of Nigerian Universities,SSANU rather advised
government to implement the 2009 agreements it
entered with the unions in tertiary institutions.
In a statement signed by Samson Ugwoke,
President of SSANU and spokesperson of NAAT,
SSANU and NASU tited, ‘Our stand on the on-going
ASUU strike’, the unions sympathised with ASUU
but noted that the MoU was not in the best interest
of the education sector.
Cross section of stakeholders at a meeting to
review the ongoing strike by ASUU held at the
Trenchard Hall of the University of Ibadan on
Monday. Photo by Dare Fasube
It stated “We sympathise and solidarise with our
sister union, ASUU over their long drawn struggle
for the welfare of their members. We urged the
government to build more confidence in
governance, at all times, by respecting agreements
it freely enters into with unions.
”However, we caution that any settlement of the
current dispute must take into account the interests
of all the university-based unions (NAAT, SSANU,
NASU and ASUU). The three Non-Teaching Staff
Unions of NAAT, SSANU and NASU are opposed to
any extraneous demands by either ASUU or any
group in the university which are prejudicial to the
welfare of our members.
”Our stand is that government should jettison the so
called ASUU’s Memorandum of Understanding
(MOU) and concentrate on full implementation of the
2009 FGN/Unions agreements which border on staff
conditions of service and welfare, and increased
funding to universities.
”The MOU being referred to by ASUU is for their
selfish end and it is bound to generate more crises
in the university sub-sector.
The Non-Teaching Staff Unions in the universities
will stoutly resist any attemp t to ‘sell’ the
universities to ASUU.
”All university based unions signed agreements in
2009 with the government, it is therefore advised
that all contentious issues in all the agreements be
settled holistically to avoid a ‘relay race’ in strike
actions in the universities.
”The implementation of any union’s MOU should not
come in between the period of implementation of
signed agreements rather, such items in the MOU
should wait to be re-negotiated in another
agreement(s).”